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Discovery Family (UK
Discovery Family UK & Ireland (formerly Discovery Kids '''and '''The Hub) is a British children's and family television channel owned by Discovery Networks Northern Europe and Hasbro. The network first premiered on February 1, 2000 as Discovery Kids, a spin-off of Discovery Channel UK that featured nature, science, and adventure-themed programs aimed towards children aged 6 to 11. After Discovery announced in April 2009 that the company made a joint venture with Hasbro to re-launch Discovery Kids US as The Hub, Discovery Kids UK decided to follow suit, and the network was relaunched as The Hub on February 28, 2011. After The Hub network in the U.S. was re-branded as Discovery Family in October 2014, the channel followed suit as well, and was re-branded as Discovery Family on April 2, 2015. Unlike it's U.S. counterpart, which broadcasts 24 hours a day, the UK variant airs only for 14 hours a day, broadcasting from 6:00am until 8:00pm, with Discovery Life taking over for the night. History As Discovery Kids (2000 - 2011) Discovery Networks Northern Europe (formerly Discovery Networks Europe at the time of its launch) had launched Discovery Family originally as Discovery Kids on February 1, 2000. At the time of its launch, the channel was broadcast exclusively on the On Digital service of most cable and satellite companies in the UK and Ireland. Eventually, it became available on other digital platforms such as Sky and Virgin Media. The channel had also broadcast only for 14 hours a day, and had originally timeshared with Discovery Wings. From 2000 until 2004, the channel was only carried by a few digital television providers. By late-2005, it carried in 15 million homes across the UK, and 4 million in Ireland. In April 2009, after Discovery Communications announced that they had made a joint venture with Hasbro to replace Discovery Kids with The Hub in October 2010, the channel decided to follow suit, and on February 28, 2011, Discovery Kids UK had signed-off at 10:00am, and was replaced with The Hub. As The Hub (2011 - 2015) The Hub launched in the UK and Ireland on February 28, 2011 at 10:00am, effectively replacing Discovery Kids. Despite the channels rebranding, the network continued to target viewers aged 2 through 14. On the day of its launch, the channel also premiered their first block, HubBub, which aired every weekday morning from 7:00am until 10:00am. This block was eventually retired in Summer 2013 due to it's low ratings. The president of Discovery Networks Northern Europe (formerly Discovery Networks Western Europe) announced that The Hub's main goal would be to be vibrant and diverse in its programming. Unlike it's U.S. counterpart, the channel did receive a strong viewership, but however, was only broadcast for 15 hours a day, with no primetime block being aired in its place. The channel would mainly be off the air completely for the night until it would resume normal programming at 6:00am. In late-2013, The Hub channel in the U.S. renamed itself to Hub Network, and unveiled a new logo and imaging campaign. The Hub UK decided not to follow this branding, but instead introduced it's own new rebrand and logo, which was unveiled in early 2014. As Discovery Family (2015 - present) After Hub Network in the U.S. re-branded into Discovery Family on October 13, 2014, The Hub UK followed suit, and was re-branded as Discovery Family on April 2, 2015, just four years after The Hub UK launched. The channel continues to air children's programming during the day, and night, is taken over by it's primetime block, Discovery Life. The president of Discovery Networks Northern Europe later stated that channel would continue to have a larger emphasis on airing programmes targeted towards children and their parents. Current programming Discovery Family programming * G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero * Littlest Pet Shop * My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic * Pound Puppies * Transformers: Prime * Transformers: Rescue Bots * Bobby's World * Grossology * The Magic School Bus * The Saddle Club * Turbo FAST * Step by Step * The Next Step * Timeblazers * ToddWorld * Wilbur * ALF * Animaniacs * Atomic Betty * Batman Beyond * Endurance * Family Ties * Kaijudo * R.L. Stine's The Haunting Hour * SheZow * The Super Hero Squad Show * Tiny Toon Adventures * Sabrina: Secrets of a Teenage Witch * Strawberry Shortcake's Berry Bitty Adventures * Teenage Fairytale Dropouts * Iggy Arbuckle * Angela Anaconda * Annedroids Programming on Discovery Life * Addicted * Bizzare ER * Boston Med * I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant * Mystery Diagnosis * NY ER * Sex Sent Me to the ER * Untold Stories of the ER * World's Worst Mom * Blossom * Cake Boss * Extreme Couponing * Kitchen Boss * Next Great Baker * Property Ladders * Quints by Suprise * Six Little McGhees * Too Cute * Daria * Sister, Sister * Lost * Happy Days * Hoarders * Dr. Ken Former programming * Adventure Camp * Animal Jam * The Aquabats! Super Show! * Balamory * Bindi the Jungle Girl * Croc Files * Flight 29 Down * The Future Is Wild * Gross! * Growing Up Creepie * Hi-5 * Harry and His Bucket Full of Dinosaurs * Kenny the Shark * Kitty Cats * Nini's Treehouse * Operation Junkyard * Pappyland * The Paz Show * Peep and the Big Wide World * Popular Mechanics for Kids * Sail Away * The Screeh Owls * Serious * Skunked TV * Time Warp Trio * Tracey McBean * Truth or Scare * Tutenstein * Wild Guess * Dan Vs. * Dr. Dog * Deltora Quest * Doogie Howser, M.D. * The Facts of Life * Family Game Night * The Golden Girls * Fraggle Rock * Goosebumps * Laverne & Shirley * Majors & Minors * Spookville * Say Yes to the Dress * Ultimate Cake Off Other services Discovery Family + 1 * In 2009, Discovery Kids UK launched a timeshift service originally called Discovery Kids + 1, which would allow viewers to watch the network's programming one hour later. The service was originally going to be called Discovery Kids Replay. In February 2011, the service was renamed The Hub + 1, and was renamed again in 2015, as Discovery Family + 1. Discovery Family HD * In October 2010, Discovery Kids UK launched an HD simulcast of their channel. The network was at first only available on Sky, but later spread to other digital providers. The channel broadcasts programs in 1080i HD and in 16:9 widescreen format. In February 2011, it was renamed The Hub HD, and in April 2015, was renamed Discovery Family HD. Planned On Demand service * In late-2008, Discovery Networks Northern Europe announced that they had plans to launch an on demand service for Discovery Kids that would available on Sky, Virgin Media, and Freeview. These plans were interrupted in April 2009, after Discovery Communications announced they would rebrand the Discovery Kids U.S. channel to The Hub. The plans were bought back up in 2012, but then later discontinued altogether in 2013. As of 2016, all Discovery Family programmes can now be watched on the Sky Kids app. Website * DiscoveryFamilyChannel.co.uk * DiscoveryFamilyChannel.com.ie Category:Hasbro Category:Discovery Communications Category:London Category:Dublin Category:United Kingdom Category:Ireland Category:Television channels and stations established in 2000